In late December we caught glimpses of Shane Curruth‘s new indie thriller Upstream Colour, in the form of two very intriguing teaser trailers. A full trailer has now arrived and although it doesn’t reveal much more it cranks up the intrigue and adds some new and mysterious elements.
Much like Curruth’s last film, the 2004 micro-budget sci-fi thriller Primer, Upstream Colour looks a bit of a mind-bender. The official synopsis backs that up: ‘A man and woman are drawn together, entangled in the life cycle of an ageless organism. Identity becomes an illusion as they struggle to assemble the loose fragments of wrecked lives.’
But this new trailer hints that there’s more at work here than the mysterious ‘ageless organism’. It appears the couple stumble upon a secret place: one that feels all too familiar. There’s also a scene hinting that hypnotism may have been used at some point. But what does it all mean? And can the couple figure it out before their lives completely fall apart? I can’t wait to find out.
This film’s visually stunning – but will the revelations in it be equally so? It does look like the sort of gritty, head-scratching thriller I love though. I’m sold already and don’t really want to see much more, to keep the big reveal a complete surprise.
Looks like I may get my wish, as the film gets a limited release in the States shortly. Unfortunately that means it’s unlikely to get a cinematic release here …unless it gets picked up for a festival screening – hint, hint, NZIFF. Being a huge Primer fan, I sure hope I get to see this on the big screen.
Intrigued? Baffled? What’s your favourite mind-bending indie drama?
Written and directed by Shane Carruth, Upstream Colour stars Shane Carruth, Andrew Sensenig, Brina Palencia, Amy Seimetz and Mollie Milligan.
There’s no New Zealand release date yet. We’ll keep you posted.
